8 Foods Marketed as Healthy That Are Full of Hidden Problems

Grocery aisles are full of products dressed up in green packaging and reassuring buzzwords, low fat, multigrain, all natural. A lot of what hides behind those words tells a very different story once the label actually gets read.

“People think they’re doing something good by choosing sugar-free,” registered dietitian Julie Kramer told The Well by Northwell. That instinct, she explains, does not account for how processed the product often still is.

None of these foods are secretly dangerous, and none require permanent banishment from a shopping cart. Here are eight foods marketed as healthy that come with more hidden problems than their packaging lets on.

Granola Bars

Granola bars lean on their association with whole grains, nuts and dried fruit to earn a healthy reputation. But many contain high amounts of sugar, refined grains and hydrogenated oils, according to cardiologist Amar Shere in comments to Elior.

Flavored Yogurt

Plain yogurt is a genuinely nutritious choice, but flavored versions are a different story entirely. Fruit on the bottom varieties in particular can act as sugar traps, and low fat versions often add even more sugar back in to make up for the missing flavor.

Coconut Water

Marketed as a natural alternative to sports drinks, plain coconut water carries a reasonable amount of natural sugar on its own. Flavored versions push that number much higher, sometimes up to 28 grams of sugar per serving, which can cancel out much of the hydration benefit.

Veggie Chips

Veggie chips sound like an obvious upgrade over potato chips, but the ingredient list rarely backs that up. Most are still built primarily from potato starch, fried in the same inflammatory oils, and loaded with just as much sodium as the chips they are meant to replace.

Multigrain Bread

The word multigrain only means a product contains more than one type of grain, not that any of them are whole, according to GoodRx. Many multigrain breads are made primarily from refined flour, which digests quickly and can trigger the same blood sugar spikes as white bread.

Fruit Juice

Even juice labeled 100 percent fruit is still high in natural sugar without any of the fiber that comes with eating the whole fruit. Without that fiber slowing things down, the sugar gets absorbed quickly, producing a blood sugar spike similar to a can of soda.

Protein Bars

Protein bars often market themselves around a single, impressive number on the front of the wrapper. That number can distract from a long list of added sugars, refined carbohydrates and artificial sweeteners hiding in the rest of the ingredient panel.

Egg Substitutes

Egg substitutes are frequently pitched as the heart healthy swap for whole eggs, largely due to outdated concerns about dietary cholesterol. Many are also highly processed, combining egg whites with starches, gums and artificial colors to mimic the texture of the real thing.

None of this means the healthy sounding aisle of the grocery store is a trap to avoid entirely. It just means the actual ingredient list, not the label out front, is still the only reliable way to know what is really inside.